Conceal those flaws!

Your guide to flawless skin!

For my instagram girlies!

To start off with whenever wanting to cover something or have flawless skin, or apply any product the 1st step is to exfoliate. We don't want any dry patches that are going to stand out when we have our makeup on or end up like cake face piling the products on, 'less is more'. Dry patches can make our makeup look cakey even if we have the slightest bit on it will make us look like we dipped our face in a tub of foundation! For exfoliators I recommend...
-Aapri exfoliating scrub cream
-A DIY exfoliator which consists of honey, olive oil& brown sugar

Secondly...MOISTURISE! Even if you have oily skin! You make think because you have oily skin your skin has all the moisture it needs when in fact, by not moisturising your skin is producing more oil to compensate for the moisture it is not getting, which may lead to breakouts, blackheads etc. and we don't want that! If you have dry skin moisturise like there is no tomorrow! When we apply our makeup we want a smooth surface and we can't get that if we have dry patches, or rough skin.. we want our foundation and concealor to glide on-not to cling to places and slide over others.

For moisturisers I recommend...
-(dry skin) oilatum junior cream which is an emollient which means it will be really thick in consistency which is great for really dry skin however in terms of makeup application it may be too thick and cause makeup to slip& slide throughout the day. So for people with really dry skin I suggest wearing a light or medium moisturiser and then applying the thicker moisturiser in places where you are more dryer (but not too much). I have really dry skin and on a day to day basis use Beauty Formulas extra dry moisturising cream which was really cheap around £1 or £2 and works brilliantly! It is quickly absorbed into my skin so my makeup goes on smoothly without sliding around or looking greasy.
-(combination skin) Simple light moisturiser or garner fresh moisturiser will add some moisture but control oily areas
-(oily skin) choose a foundation that is oil FREE! This will help control the oils and help unclog the pores, a good moisturiser for oily skin is cliniques dramatically different moisturiser & simples oil free moisturiser.


Now on to the fun stuff,getting flawless skin and hiding those imperfections such as dark circles, breakouts, redness etc, but nevertheless everyone has imperfections so its nothing to be too worried about, thats what makeup is for right?!

1.FOUNDATION

 Make sure you choose a foundation that suits your skin! There is no point going for a full coverage foundation when you have really good skin, minor breakouts and dark circles, it more worth it to invest in a good concealor! You can get foundations in different finishes for example, matt, dewy, semi-matt etc and you can also get them in different coverages light, light-medium, buildable, full etc

For drugstore foundation I really love the collections 2000 lasting perfection foundation, it has a medium to buildable coverage with a really good staying powder, it is also a really good affordable price at only £6!

Collections 2000 lasting perfection
foundation RRP-£6

Revlon colourstay
RRP-£12.49

Another good drugstore foundation is the revlon colorstay foundation which is available in two formulations; oily/combination- which has a matt finish and is full coverage, dry/normal- which has a slightly more dewy finish and in my opinion I think is more buildable, but never to worry! These foundations can be easily sheered down with moisturiser for that more natural glowing look.






For high end foundation the illamasqua skin base foundation is a excellent foundation which is good for all skin types and has a buildable coverage so can be worn lightly or to the max. It has a dewy   finish but for oily skins just pop a powder on top and your ready to go! Another good thing about the skin base is that one of its ingredients is beauty balm which will act as a primer making the foundation glide on to the skin. Illamasqua also have really good shade varieties for the skin base with pink, yellow and neutral undertones. My favourite way to apply this foundation is with my real techniques buffing brush, I think buffing the foundation gives a more 'its my skin' look, and a smooth, quick& easy application.

Illamasqua skin base foundation rep-£25

Another alternative for high end foundation is Nars sheer glow- it is a medium-full coverage foundation with a glowing finish, not so much dewy but like a polished sheen to the skin. It looks amazing when on and provides really good coverage just on its own without concealor! However I do think it is more suited for oiler type skin as it tends to dry my skin out when i wear it- nevertheless I keep it for occasions.

Nars sheer glow RRP-£29

2.CONCEALOR-

 There are many different types of concealor, cake, liquid, stick, pen/highlighter etc, you just have to find the one that works for you and the one you can work with and when you have your holy grail say bye bye to those bags& breakouts! When applying concealor I suggest patting the concealor on problem areas with your finger as it warms up the product so you get a smooth application, brushes are good too but they can waste product and rubbing concealor on areas is not a good idea as the product just magically disappears!

For drugstore concealor i recommend collections 2000 lasting perfection concealor (you cannot go wrong seriously-unless they don't cater to your shade). It is a full coverage concealor that lasts all day! It can cover dark circles, breakouts and redness! The only downside is that they only have about 4 shades. When it comes to covering dark circles it is wise (if they are quite dark) to use a sammon or peach corrector, this means when it comes to putting concealor on your under eyes, they will not appear ashy. When covering redness, for example spots it is better to use a concealor with a yellow undertone, because the yellow will cancel out the red. I use mac nw25 studio finish concealor as my corrector when i develop dark circles as i feel it cancels out the darkness (it has a strong pink undertone) then i just put my normal concealor on top!

RRP-£4,19

For high end concealor I recommend mac studio finish concealor, its a really good full coverage concealor and for 7g £13.50 is not a bad price as it lasts ages! It covers breakouts dark circles, redness but however it can get oily throughout the day and crease. This can be easily fixed by applying some powder- so its not too bad.

RRP-£13.50

Mac studio sculpt concealor is also a good full coverage concealor for those with dryer skin but however again it does tend to crease throughout the day.

Illamasqua concealor in my opinion is just as good as the mac studio finish concealor, infact better as it has a less oiler formulation so there is less creasing throughout the day and it tends to stay more in place, however for the same price you get 2g of product, so which would you rather get? Put up with the creasing for 7g of product or pay the same amount for less than half but get an improved formula?...

RRP-£13.50

RRP-£21

Illamasqua rich liquid foundation- and yes, I know this is not a concealor but it is a extremely full coverage foundation and is thick enough to be used as a concealor. This foundation is used by makeup artists to cover tattoos and birthmarks so it would be great for blemishes or dark circles! The only downfall is that it clings to any dry patch but a  good exfoliation and moisturising before hand and you should be flawless in no time!